Virtual Issue: Key Perspectives in the Management of Biological Invasions

Edited by Philip E. Hulme
OCTOBER 2009

A key strategic aim of the Journal of Applied Ecology is to increase both the authorship and readership of the journal from Asia, and we are working proactively to achieve this. In this regard the Editorial board of the Journal of Applied Ecology have been closely involved in the planning of the first International Congress on Biological Invasions held in China. The Congress, sponsored by the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) and CAB International (CABI), will take place in Fuzhou in November 2009. The rapid economic development in China and growth in international trade over the last decades has led to biological invasions becoming an increasingly high profile issue in China. As a dominant exporter of commodities across the globe, China is widely regarded as a potentially significant source of invasive organisms but at the same time the number of new pests and diseases entering China is closely tied to economic growth (see Editorial in Volume 46 (1):10-18, February 2009).

To coincide with the Congress, and also to bring applied perspectives in the management of invasive species to a wider readership, the Journal of Applied Ecology is launching a Virtual Issue presenting the 20 most cited papers the journal has published in this field in the last 5 years. A key strategic aim of the journal is to increase both the authorship and readership of the journal from China, and we are working proactively to achieve this. Nevertheless, we have received few submissions from China addressing the applied perspectives of managing invasive species. We are very keen to hear from scientists carrying out the most exciting and influential research in this region about any initiatives that they feel could help them engage more fully with the journal. We hope the Congress will act as a catalyst for excellent applied research and look forward in publishing the best research from China in the pages of our journal.

Philip E. Hulme, Editor, Journal of Applied Ecology

Read the introduction and article list for this Virtual Issue translated into Simplified Chinese here.